Third Times' the Charm
by SRN713
Summary: After much thought and consideration, Matt thought it was time to take his relationship with Neru to the next level. He had it all planned out: find the perfect setting and just ask. Unfortunately, there's always something that ruined the mood that he worked so hard to set. Will he ever get the opportunity to just say those four little words to Neru? [MattOC; Requested Three Shot]
1. First Attempt

Dark blue eyes of Matt stared at the small bouquet of flowers in his hand as he placed it in a vase, glancing through his goggles at the cake that sat on the dining room table as he set it perfectly in the middle. His cigarette was hanging loosely on his lips, yet it was unlit. Candles were lit and placed on the table, freshly lit just minutes ago. His mind was deep in thought and he was feeling a little anxious, a characteristic that was foreign to someone like him. He looked at the time – it was almost twelve – before sighing. He was waiting expectantly for Neru to come in, since he texted her saying he wanted to ask her something important and to meet him in the dining room of the apartment. At the moment, she was out doing something – he did not know and she did not tell him – and he was busy waiting for her to come home. She had not been gone for long, at least an hour, but it was enough to get everything set up perfectly just for her.

Through his goggles, he spotted a tiny velvet box hiding behind the cake, Neru's favorite treat, and making sure it was hidden perfectly behind it. When he was sure, he placed his hand on it and opened it, revealing a magnificent diamond ring kept safely in white silk. He smiled; he knew it would suit her, especially since he spent so much time looking for the perfect engagement ring. As surprising as it was, Matt was very particular when it came to finding a good enough gift that would be for her. He, honestly, felt anxious about asking the infamous four sentence question even though they had been together for quite some time – about a year and a half to two years now. Still, the fact that he was going forward with the plan of taking the relationship to the next level was really odd for him. He did love her; more than he ever thought was imaginable to love another. Maybe the thought of asking her was just making him antsy, that taking it to the next level was something he should think about more before actually going through with such an important step.

The gamer's eyes narrowed behind his goggles, removing the unlit cigarette from his lips. _No_, he told himself, _no, I won't chicken out of this_. He already thought about all of this, especially to Mello, who thought it was a good idea and it would be best for Matt. He knew he loved her to no end, and asking her to marry him would only prove his point.

The sound of the door opening was heard, grabbing Matt's attention. He quickly closed the box and stood back up, playing it cool and making it seem like it was just a little gift that he put together just for her. A loud sigh was heard from the familiar voice of Neru entered the apartment. She sounded a little fatigued, that or relieved about something. He was not entirely sure, but at the moment he was more focused on what was going to happen very soon, something that would change both his life and Neru's life forever.

"Matt!" She called out to him. "I'm back! Where are you?"

"Didn't you get my message?" He asked her.

"Um..." He could tell that she was shifting her eyes. "…No?"

He smiled and shook his head; why was he not surprised by her answer?

"I'm in the dining room." He called her.

Moments later, the familiar dark hair that belonged to Neru entered the location that Matt was in, her brown eyes looking over him and sending him a sweet smile. She was glad to see him after whatever it was that she was doing, but he was she was going to be even happier when she spotted the familiar treat on the table. Then, they fell upon the cake, flowers and candles set up on the table.

"Wha…" She started, looking over everything a second time before looking at Matt. "What…is all this…?"

He shrugged and replied, "Well, it's cake, flowers and candles." He gave her a cocky look. "I thought you knew what it was."

She gave him a look, one that called him a smartass for his comment.

"I know what it is," she stated, "but I'm asking what it's for?"

He chuckled as he took a step forward.

"I thought I should do something nice for you for a change." He explained. "Seeing as how cake is your favorite, I thought I would get it for you."

She looked at him curiously as she made her way over to him; realizing that he was still standing near the location of the ring, he made his way forward and met her halfway. He did not want her seeing it just yet, but more as a surprise.

"What's the occasion, Matt?" She questioned, brown eyes looking over the cake as if she just won a fat stack of cash and became the richest person in the world. "You never do something like this for me unless it's really important."

He smiled as his hands fell on her hips, pulling her closer to him, as he answered, "There is something I want to tell you, but how about that cake first?"

Her face brightened at his words before she kissed his lips and ran into the kitchen. It was as if she was waiting for him to give her permission to leave for the plates and eat her cake. He smiled and shook his head at how fast she sprinted out of the room. He loved the way her eyes lit up over the littlest things, especially when it was about the things she loved the most. It reminded him of the days back at Wammy's Orphanage; she was so innocent and childlike…when she was not causing trouble and messing with Mello and his chocolate. He loved that innocent look that filled in her eyes. It was one of the many reasons why he loved her as much as he did. His lips pursed. He assumed it was also one of the reasons that convinced him to take the next step. He adored everything about her; her sweet smile, brown eyes, and a personality that was all her own. He held a lot of respect for her, especially since she had been so helpful during the Kira investigation.

His eyes fell down to the ring, his gloved hand reaching over to pick it up. The anxiety that once latched onto him moments before she arrived had completely vanished from him. He no longer felt afraid to ask her the desired question, one that he had thought about for many months. Instead, he felt…expectant; he anticipated this moment. Of course, he wanted the moment to be just right so she can remember it many years from now. Granted, it may not be the fanciest idea for remembering the day someone proposed, but it certainly was better than just proposing in any old place. As mentioned before, Matt wanted this moment to be extra special, and it was all for Neru. He smile fell on his lips as he pocketed the ring. Pretty soon, the moment would arise for when he would ask that question, hoping that she would, indeed, say yes.

Looking back over to the kitchen, he watched silently as Neru returned with the plates and utensils in hand. Her smile was wide as she handed one off to him, to which he accepted.

"So tell me, Matt," she said, cutting herself a piece. Even though she handed him a plate, Matt opted against taking one; it _was_ hers after all. "What is all this for?"

"I already told you," he replied, setting down the empty plate. "I thought I should do something nice for you."

"Mmhmm…" She answered as she took a bite of cake – it just so happened to be chocolate, which was one of her many favorites. She looked at him after swallowing the piece. "I know you're planning something because you rarely do stuff like this." She set her own plate down and turned to look at him. "So what gives?"

His eyes shifted behind his orange goggles, swallowing the lump in his throat. _This is it…_ He told himself as his hand slipped into his pocket unnoticed. _It's not or never._

"Well," he slowly started taking a step toward her. "There's something that's been on my mind for…a really long time." She raised an eyebrow. "It's been…bothering me a lot, and I came to the decision to just…let it out." She blinked, waiting for the question to come up. He inhaled as he gripped the box in his hand. "Neru…" He started.

**_SLAM!_**

"MATT!" He cringed at the sound of his name being shouted before turning around to spot an enraged looking Mello storming up to him. "Where the Hell is it?!"

His brows furrowed, yet he remained calm.

"Where's what?" He questioned, though he had a feeling he knew what it was.

"My damn stash of chocolate!" Yup, he knew it. "You left a note saying you stashed it, and I'm about ready to kick your ass if you don't tell me where it is!"

Before Matt had the chance to answer him, Neru suddenly burst out into laughter. When he looked at her, he noticed her holding her stomach and using the table for support. He noticed some of the tears of laughter falling from her eyes. Matt frowned; that was something else he anticipated.

"Neru," he spoke. "What did you do?"

When her laughter ceased, she looked at him, wiping away the tears that formed with her sleeve. Her face was flushed from all of the laughing she did.

"R-remember when I s-said that I was going out to do something?" She asked. Matt kept staring at her, though he could tell Mello was about ready to explode. She snickered and said, "Well, I went to the hideout…a-and I stole Mello's chocolate and hid them. Then, I wrote a n-note that said you did it!"

She started to laugh again, only this time she laughed so much she fell to the floor, holding her stomach and laughing hysterically. Matt simply watched her for a moment before looking at his best friend, who looked at him around the same time. How could they have fallen for this trick…again? Matt never was a sweets person to begin with, and Mello knew better than to blame him. Then again, it was hard when one is as addicted to chocolates as Matt is to video games. Besides, Neru had forged his handwriting and made it seem as though it was Matt. However, he knew her handwriting all too well; her handwriting was much more elegant and…well, feminine for it to be Matt's handwriting. He was surprised Mello actually fell for such a thing the way he did. Maybe it was his emotions that clouded his mind so much that he did not even notice.

After a moment, and while Neru continued to laugh, Mello looked over at everything that was there, taking a good look at it before looking back at Matt.

"What's all this for?" He questioned, his once pissed off demeanor a thing of the past. Matt did not reply; his face remained straight as if he was ticked off. Instead, he glanced at the still laughing Neru before looking back at him. Then, he pulled out the box that held the engagement ring and showed it to him. It did not take long for it to click in Mello's mind and figure out what was going on. He was silent for a long moment before looking back at his best friend, who quickly pocketed the ring before she saw it. Then, after another moment of near silence, his eyes shifted and only one word left his lips: "Oops…"


	2. Second Attempt

"It was so nice of you to take me out to dinner, Matt," said Neru, holding onto his arm and glancing up at him. The nighttime lights in the park gave his goggles a faint glow, yet she was still able to see the dark blue eyes that were hidden behind them. "It's completely different from what I'm used to."

He looked at her, smiling down at her, and said, "Hey, better to change things up a little and keep the relationship going, right?" She giggled at that as Matt took a minor glance around.

His first attempt at proposing to Neru two weeks back was a complete bust on his part; with Mello crashing and demanding his chocolate, he had to make up an insane excuse for what he wanted to ask. That excuse turned out to be that he thought it was her birthday, to which he was was punched in the shoulder moments later. He knew when her birthday was, of course, but he did not want to go spoiling the surprise all too soon. It would not be right for him to do that, especially when he wanted to the moment to be something worth remembering. With that in mind, he had to start from square one and make different plans to woo Neru and pop the question in the most romantic scene possible. Unfortunately, his second plan of attack was a little harder to come up with, seeing as how he was not exactly the best when it came to planning romantic outings with Neru. She was the one who usually planned that stuff, to which he went along with. Since he was unable to come up with anything good, he was forced to call Mello and see if there was anything he could come up with.

His response: "How the Hell am I supposed to know that answer? Take her out to dinner or something."

"You've been acting really weird lately," Neru pointed out. "Have you been smoking less or something?"

He laughed at that.

"No, I haven't been smoking less," he said. "I've just got a lot on my mind."

She looked at him again and asked, "Like?"

He pretended to think a moment before shrugging absently.

"I don't know," he fibbed. "I guess I've been thinking about how I haven't done a lot for you, while you..." He laughed. "You've been doing pretty much everything for me." He looked down at her, staring into her brown eyes. "I guess I wanted to return the favor."

She smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder just as they started making their way onto a bridge leading over a small stream, the faint sounds of crickets chirping and the wind whistling bring upon a peaceful atmosphere. The lighting of the city gave a warming, almost ethereal glow to it to the area around them, and it made Matt smile. Even though the walk in the park was more or less a last minute thing, he did not want to go proposing to her in public. He wanted to do something different, especially if it was out of his comfort zone. Being outside was definitely that. Neru knew that, too, and occasionally noticed him looking about as if he just wanted to get out of there as fast as he could. She already asked him if he wanted to head home, remembering his distaste for the outdoors, but he quickly declined. He did not want their day to be ruined just because he did not want to be outside; that would be selfish, and he certainly did not want to be selfish in front of her.

His lips pursed. He would wait until after he proposed to act like that.

"Well, that's very sweet of you," she replied as they stopped on the middle of the bridge. "Especially since you have such a strong dislike for the outside."

He chuckled and said, "You weren't thinking that when you left me outside in the snow."

She started to laugh at that, recalling how she pushed him out the door, shut it, and locked him out; ignoring the banging that game from the gamer himself.

"I couldn't help it! It was that time of the month!" She replied. He looked at her curiously as she went on. "I mean that time of the month when you usually tick me off!"

"Ah," he muttered, "_that_ time of the month." He shook his head. "But you went too far that day. I almost froze my ass off and caught a cold because of that."

She looked at him, raising an eyebrow, before saying, "You were the one who threw my cake out the window!"

He gave her the same look.

"Because you hid my PSP!"

"In the most obvious place possible!" She paused as they stopped to lean on the railing. "Under our mattress." He could not help but laugh at the pout that formed on her face, while she glared at him briefly. "What's so funny?"

"That was not the most obvious place to put a PSP," he replied, drapping an arm over her shoulder. "I almost broke the damn thing by sitting on it."

"Be happy that I stopped you when I did," she pointed out, leaning her head on his shoulder once again. "Be happy that I have a heart."

He chuckled and leaned his head against hers, looking down at the stream below.

"Keep telling yourself that," he replied, earning a nudge from Neru as she glared at him.

A comfortable silence came over the two of them as they stared at the city, enjoying the subtle songs of nature as they played their own melodic versions of music. The silence gave Matt a moment to collect his thoughts, making sure that everything was in place for what was to happen. He knew that, after the silence set in, he would take a moment to (once again) talk about their time together before asking her that question. After taking a few scans of his surroundings, he knew that there was no one out and about - the only exception would be an occasional couple, but even he knew they would never ruin his moment with Neru. As far as he knew, the moment was perfect; the air was right, the setting was in place, and the atmosphere was set in such a manner that one could say it was romantic. Even an inexperienced romantic like himself could see that much. It was only a matter of time before the night would be complete, and that time was slowly coming to fruition for him.

Inhaling deeply, Matt removed his head from Neru and looked down at her. Her brown eyes glistened in the faint lighting, but even that was enough to take his breath away for a moment. However, it did not take him long to return to reality and face her a little.

"Hey, Neru?" He spoke, grabbing her attention and making her look at him.

"What's up?" She replied.

His hand fell into his pocket, taking hold of the box holding the wedding ring, before looking out as if his mind was off in another world.

"About two weeks ago..." He started, trying to figure out a way to ease into asking her the question, before looking back at her. "I honestly knew when your birthday was."

She smiled lightly, leaning against the railing and crossing one leg in front of the other, and said, "I knew you remembered when it was, Matt." He remained silent and let her continue. "The look in your eyes said so. My question is..." She turned to face him this time, "what's really on your mind?"

He kept quiet at that point, inhaling silently as he prepared himself for the perfect moment.

"Neru..." He started. She looked into his eyes, waiting patiently for him to ask. "There was something really important that I wanted to ask you, but since you pulled that prank on Mello and he chased me down, I never got to." Once again, she remained silent; he feared that she had an idea of what he was going to ask. Then everything he did would have just been a waste of time. After a moment, he went on. "What I wanted to ask...was..."

"Was what, Matt?" She questioned, moving closer to him and keeping her eyes on his.

He was just seconds away from asking that question, his confidence ready to take control, when sudden felt something hit his nose. It almost made him jump, but instead made him flinch. It was wet, something that nearly threw him off. Neru gave him a confused look before flinching as well; it was clear that the same liquidy feeling hit her as well. Blinking, they looked up at the same time, only for Matt to catch another droplet on his goggles, followed by another and another. It was when he came to horrid realization, one that made him dread and despise the outdoors even more than before: it was going to rain, or it was raining. That was the one thing that he hated about being outside; it was the damn rain that ruined his moment. Not only that, but it was while he was looking up did he hear the soft roll of thunder follow suit. A frown spread on his lips. _Why did it have to rain now?_

He knew there was an old saying how the rain made things more romantic, or so he was told by lovestruck women, but for Matt it only made things worse. It was bad enough he was swallowing everything to be there for Neru in order to propose to her, to let her know that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her as her husband; but the rain was only destroying that moment for him. All those things about how the "rain was romantic" or the "rain is beautiful" was nothing but a figment of imagination. His hatred for the outside, for all he knew, would ruin everything he worked so hard to set up for Neru. Unfortunately for him, his moment with Neru was ruined for the second time, and it was caused by that damned woman commonly known as Mother Nature. Thanks a lot, woman. He thought to himself. _Thanks for ruining this moment._

Neru giggled at the expression that was on his face and asked, "Do you want to get out of this rain?" He looked at her, a glare in his eyes that was directed toward the weather as it started to pour. "I can tell you don't want to be out here, so let's just head home."

With a frown, he nodded, took her hand, and ran off the bridge with Neru by his side. Why was his luck so bad? What did he ever do to deserve this? All he wanted was to propose to Neru. That was all he wanted; but no, no one wanted that to happen. Instead, everything just wanted to mess with his head and ruin everything he worked hard to make perfect. He sighed to himself. _Well_, he told himself, _it looks like the third time has to be i_t. At least, that was what he hoped.


	3. Final Attempt

_Knock knock_. "Matt?" _Knock knock knock_. "Matt? Can you talk to me? Please?" A pause was soon met, giving a moment of peace in Matt's mind as his face buried into his pillow, but it was interrupted once again by the soft knocking coming from the ever-worried Neru. "Come on, Matt. Don't ignore me. Did I do something wrong?"

The pillow was immediately removed from his face, revealing the almost dull look behind his goggles, as he looked at the door, a surge of guilt running through him. Ever since his failed attempt at proposing to Neru last week, he had been feeling down and upset with himself. It was to a point where he just started to ignore everything around him, including the woman in question. He did not mean to do it, really, but he had been so ticked off about his perfect moment being ruined that it just...made him depressed. He did not mean to make it sound like it was her fault; the first one kind of was, but he did not blame her for it entirely. All he wanted was to set up a perfect moment for the two of them, make it seem like it was a bit of a fairytale even if it meant going out of his comfort zone. That was all he asked for: just one moment with Neru so he could just let it out. But no, no one wanted that to happen. No one at all, and that included that damn bitch Mother Nature. The world was slowly turning its back on him, as if it wanted him to be forever alone.

That made him frown as he sat up, tossing the pillow to the side. Yeah, that had to be it.

Standing up, he made his way to the door, unlocked it and opened it, only to find the worried brown eyes that belonged to Neru as she looked up at him. Just that simple look made him feel even worse than before.

"Matt, are you okay?" She asked, her voice matching the look in her eyes perfectly. "I didn't make you upset, did I?"

His frown grew as he moved his goggles to rest around his neck before pulling her into a close embrace, gripping her as if letting go would mean losing her.

"No...I'm not mad at you, Neru," he told her truthfully. It was enough to ease her tension, and she relaxed in his arms. "I'm just...feeling a down."

She looked up at him, pushing away a strand of his brown hair in the process, while asking, "What's the matter?"

His eyes shifted a moment, taking a small step away from her. He was a second away from telling her the truth, about how he had been trying to propose to her the entire time but was losing his chance every moment he had. He wanted to tell her that, but that would spoil the surprise altogether. Even though he was busy sulking in his room, he was planning another way to plan the perfect night where no one and nothing would be able to bother either of them. Unfortunately, that fear of something happening for the third time plagued his mind, hence his seemingly depressed mannerisms. That was the only setback he had: worrying about the negative possibilities of his moment with her. He hated acting that way, but what else could he do? He already tried something indoors, but that only resulted in Mello busting through the doors claiming that Matt stole his chocolate. He even tried going outside, but that only resulted in bad timing of the rain. What else was he supposed to do that did not require staying indoors while avoiding the outside?

She noticed his shifting eyes and asked, "Matt?"

He blinked, breaking his own train of thought, before looking back her for a moment.

"It's..." He started, glancing over his jacket which still held the ring in question, "...it's nothing you have to worry about."

She frowned at that; she sensed his lie, and he knew it.

"Matt, you should know that if there's anything wrong you can talk to me," she assured him. A smile formed on her lips. "I don't want anything that's bothering you to...well, bother you anymore. If you tell me, then maybe I may be able to help you."

He smiled down at her. _You want to help me find a perfect moment for me to propose?_

"Neru, I promise. It's nothing you have to worry about," he told her, placing his hands on her shoulders in a comforting manner. "It's just something that's been bugging me for a while. It'll..." He made the mistake of hesitating ever so slightly, "it'll eventually pass by."

She shook her head as he walked back to the bed and lied down.

"I know you're lying to me, Matt, and I hate when you do that." He looked at her blankly, not responding to her words. That caused her to frown even more. "I know that it's something serious when you start hesitating and telling me everything is alright."

He closed his eyes and looked away.

"Because everything _is_ alright, Neru," he told her. "I swear."

"Then look me in the eye and say that." Neru demanded. After a moment silence, he opened his eyes and looked at her, but was unable to say it. Instead, his lips pursed, his eyes narrowed briefly and he looked back at the ceiling. "I knew it! It is bothering you more than you say it is!"

Fed up, he sat back up.

"Look, Neru, I'm sorry if I'm worrying you," he snapped, "but I really don't need your help figuring out the best way to propose to you!"

The room went dead silent as Neru's eyes widened along with Matt's face turning pale. The words just slipped out, just like that; he truly did not mean to say that all so suddenly, especially right in front of the person he planned to ask. All he wanted was for her to just stop asking and leave him be for a while. That was it, but she would not give that to him. Granted, he appreciated the fact that she was worried about him, but it was not too serious. Well, to him it was, but certainly not to her. She did not have to worry about proposing; he had that covered entirely. At least, he thought he did until he ended up with two failed attempts and a slip of the tongue. Looking at Neru, he noted the darkening of her cheeks as she stared at him, speechless. She had no idea how to respond to that; from the look on her face, he assumed she was processing what he just said. He felt a little embarrassed as he looked away from her, his own face heating up as well. He wanted the moment to be special, and yet he opened his big mouth because he was frustrated.

However, her response was something that turned everything around.

"So I was right..." She muttered. "You iwere/i trying to propose."

He looked back her quickly, eyes widening in surprise; he noticed the smile on her face.

"W-wait..." He started. "Y-you knew the whole time?!"

She shrugged and walked over to him.

"I assumed that's what it was," she stated, "since you were doing things that were really out of character for you, especially the whole taking me out to dinner thing last week." His head fell in embarrassment. "Hey, don't feel so upset about it."

"Why? I wanted to make this all special, and yet you knew the whole time," he spoke in defeat.

She giggled and said, "Well, technically I didn't know anything. I just assumed that was what it was."

His eyes shifted before he sighed; she had a point.

"Yeah, well, the moment is ruined cause you know." Once again, she giggled, causing him to look at her. "What's so funny?"

"The moment's not ruined," she stated, her smile remaining on her face.

He blinked before asking, "What makes you say that?"

She remained silent for a moment before leaning in and placing a sweet kiss on his lips. When she pulled away, she spoke, and they were words that set their future into motion: "Because I'm saying yes."


End file.
